Question 2 (post 2)

Kerouac's love, and borderline obsession, with language was very evident when I read his novel On the Road. Kerouac masterfully transitions between long flowing paragraphs, bursting at the seems with imagery and adjectives, to blunt and very literal sentences with obvious skill. This constant shift in language adds a lot to the "on-the-road" feeling of the book: chaotic and somewhat unpredictable. Kerouac seems very comfortable and at-home with language in this novel, especially considering that it was written in a mere three weeks. The tone of the words seem very personable and honest, as if Kerouac himself had lived through the pages.

A good example of the authors lavish use of description is the sentence: "They were like the man with dungeon stone and gloom, rising underground, the sordid hipsters of America, a new beat generation that I was slowly joining." This sentence, with the use of adjectives like "sordid" really seems to jump off the page. I can almost see Kerouac in a dimly lit room frantically scribbling down these words.

This lavish language is contrary to the simple and literal tone that Kerouac uses to describe Sal's movements across the country. This language is chronological in nature and does not have the charm and decoration as the other type of language that Kerouac uses. Kerouac describes Sal's travels: "Cheyenne again, in the afternoon this time, and then west of the range; crossing the divide at midnight at Creston, arriving at Salt Lake City at dawn" (pg. 60). Sentences such as these are almost completely devoid of adjectives and elaboration but they are still very effective in conveying exactly when and where Sal goes.